Tag: Rio Grande Gorge

Rio Grande Gorge, Summer Gorgeousness. 07-31-2024

Geraint July 30, 2024 17 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal (Taos), NM. This week the Rio Grande Gorge in its summer finery and gorgeousness.

My hard drives frequently spin as I search for images to print or supply to art directors and clients. This week was no exception. I came up with a few select photos depicting the gorge that divides the plateau between east and west, with views from the rim and canyon, and the expansive vistas that capture the imagination and stir the soul.

If you miss this view below then you are probably asleep and should wake up or you’re driving at night.

Highway 68 and the gorge view — Highway 68 and the Gorge view.

If you prefer to take a detour off the main route you will see the following two locations.

Orilla Verde Rec Area — The Rio Grande in Orilla Verde Recreation Area.

As you ascend a steep dirt road you will encounter this grand view looking south. Remember to engage the parking break.

Gorgeous Sky over the Rio Grande Gorge — Gorgeous Sky.

A short distance on the climb out of the canyon is the Vista Verde Trail. It will take you on a very pleasant hike through lava boulder fields and rocks adorned with indigenous petroglyph art.

… to a bench with an overlook of the Rio Grande.

River View — River view from a nice resting spot.

The west rim trail takes you in a northerly direction on mostly level ground for about 10 miles. You’ll feel the cool breeze as it glances off the canyon walls and catch fabulous 360º sunsets.

Driving the 10 miles, if preferred, will bring you to the high bridge where US Highway 64 crosses the Rio Grande Gorge.

Walking across the bridge looking to the north or south you’ll get wonderful views of the river. Looking east toward the mountains is pretty nice too!

Summer light on the gorge bridge. Straight as an arrow to the mountains.

On the same evening from the bridge, this happened.

Lightning sky over the gorge — Lightning over the gorge.

On another occasion a rainbow over the chasm.

Rainbow and storm, over the gorge — Rainbow and storm over the gorge.

There have been many times I’ve traversed the bridge. It shakes a lot especially when semi-trucks cross it hauling full loads of gravel. Don’t let it prevent you from crossing it yourself, but don’t bother with a tripod. I didn’t.

Lastly, one of my favorite and most popular images was taken on a summer evening from the high bridge in 2009. A horizontal crop is on the cover of my book.

Summer Light, on the Rio Grande Gorge — Summer evening from the high bridge.

I hope you enjoyed the mini travelog this week. Join me on a photo tour/workshop and I’ll show you around these locations.

Last week I made it to the summit of Gold Hill on my two new feet. 9.8 miles round trip and 3263 elevation gain to 12703′ at the summit. My knees were complaining but I wasn’t. We’ll do Wheeler Peak the highest point in NM (13163′) in a couple of weeks for something a little easier.

As always, thank you for looking. I hope you have a good week. G

Big Sky, Mountains, Shadows, And Gorge. 02-14-2024.

Geraint February 13, 2024 12 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal, NM. This week, a big sky over Taos Mountain (Pueblo Peak), shadows in Arroyo Hondo, and the high bridge spanning the Rio Grande Gorge in Taos, NM,

It isn’t hard to get a good shot of Taos Mountain. It’s more a matter of being there at the right time. I am very fortunate to have lived in this part of the world for the last 40 years. Here, I can watch the storms make their way across the plateau, morphing with the light, and arrive at any number of preplanned locations for that perfect moment.

Big Sky, Taos Mountain, Pueblo Peak, El Prado.

Vallecito Mountain/Peak was covered in about a foot of fresh snow this week. I had wanted to catch a shot of the snow-covered trees barely discernable against the peaks. When the sun came out it was about an hour too late, but I did manage to capture a nice cloud. The new snow tends to melt fast when temperatures reach 40º F. I’ll do better next time.

Vallecito Mountain light with new snow — Vallecito Mountain with new snow.

Long shadows on Our Lady of Sorrows, Arroyo Hondo.

Arroyo Hondo church roof shadows — Arroyo Hondo Church roof shadows.

Shadows on the wall of the same church an hour later. I went back today. The sun has climbed high enough over the last five days that the cross shadow is close to the bottom of the wall at the same time of day.

Arroyo Hondo shadows on church wall — Arroyo Hondo shadows on the Church wall.

I got in a two-mile hike with my son Dylan, a couple of days ago. We hiked down the west rim of the Rio Grande Gorge which has numerous vistas like the one below. Often the canyon is buried in heavy shadows with contrasty light. This time it was flooded with light. Bighorn sheep were found in the rest area parking lot. I didn’t waste any pixels on them grazing amongst the gravel.

Rio Grande Gorge Bridge spanning the Rio Grande Gorge.

As always, thank you for looking. Have a great week. G

Rio Grande Gorge, Black, White, And Color. 02-08-2023

Geraint August 2, 2023 12 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal, NM. This week the Rio Grande Gorge, from its beginning to where it cuts deep into the canyon of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument.

If you look closely, you can see the cliffs of the Rio Grande gorge uplifting left of center. I refer to this spot as where the river meets the rift. From this point, the river travels south, never leaving the Rio Grande Gorge. At the deepest point, the river is over eight hundred feet below the canyon rim.

The Rio Grande where the gorge begins, Colorado.

Below is a view of Ute Mountain with the Rio Grande as it makes its way through the Wild and Scenic Rivers Recreation Area of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument. The sky and darkness in the canyon, with only the river and Ute Mountain, highlighted, made for a dramatic image. Click here for another view.

Ute Mountain with the Rio Grande gorge in the Wild Rivers Recreation Area — Ute Mountain with the Rio Grande Gorge.

Heading home on a photo tour with Scott last week, I couldn’t resist another picture of the red barn in the San Luis Valley. The barn, accompanied by a brooding sky, called for a black-and-white photo. I know the barn won’t be standing for much longer. It’s already losing its siding and beginning to corkscrew. With the high winds making direct hits and randomly carting off planks of wood across plains, more and more light gets through the building. In the background are a large field of potato plants and a center-pivot irrigation machine.

As always, thank you for looking. Have a great week. G

Coyote Watches, Rio Grande Gorge, Pilar, NM. 02-15-2023

Geraint February 15, 2023 27 Comments

Greetings from snow-bound San Cristobal. This week a coyote watches me from the sagebrush along the Rio Grande in Pilar, NM. A flashback to a photo tour/workshop five years ago.

This week I’m recovering from surgery on my left foot! Had I realized the lack of mobility I’m experiencing, I would have prepared a post last week. So, when I threw a virtual (numerical) dart at the archives this image came up. It’s one of my favorites so I’m putting it out here. I posted a close-up version five years ago, but I like how this more expansive view represents the whole encounter.

Coyote watches, Orilla Verde, NM — A coyote watches, Orilla Verde.

I hope you’ll forgive the single image post this week.

… and as always, thank you for looking. G

Thunder and Lightning, Portrait, August 10, 2022.

Geraint August 10, 2022 22 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal and beyond. We’ve had some violent thunder and lightning this last week. While we are grateful for the moisture here, there have been tremendous flash flooding and washouts. Particularly in the Mora Valley following the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak fire this spring.

I could see this thunder and lightning event building from our house. I had to go for a closer look. Not far, just a few miles south, there are wide open vistas of the Taos Valley Picuris, and the Truchas Peaks and beyond. I got lucky with one shot out of the car window. I wasn’t about to get out and set up a tripod. If you think about it, standing out in the rain, I’m the tallest feature in the landscape, hanging on to a metal tripod. Yes, I have a 40-year-old tripod, its metal. A man was struck by lightning during a previous storm this week in Taos. I wish him and his family well.

Here’s what I captured from the car window.

Thunder and lightning storm with lightning strike — Thunder and lightning storm, Taos, NM

Last week we visited my long-time friend and hiking partner I met when I moved to Taos in 1988. Harry and his wife Noreen invited us to their home for lunch. We hadn’t seen them since Harry’s art show in Taos. That was before covid. It was a delightful lunch and a great time visiting them at their home across the Rio Grande Gorge. Following lunch, we sat outside in the shade where the breezes came gently off the canyon rim. Harry sat next to one of his paintings, and we all noticed what a timely portrait it would make.

And the portrait. Harry is 92.

Harry Vedoe, artist and good friend. — Harry Vedoe, Danish/American artist and good friend, Carson, NM

Coming up in September and October!

If you are fortunate to be in Taos on the weekend of September 23-25, 2022, please visit the stables gallery, where I’ll be exhibiting my photography with a group of other artists. The show will consist primarily, of new black and white images, with some of my iconic images alongside.

The Stables Gallery is located at: 133 Paseo del Pueblo Norte Taos, NM 87571

On October 7-31, 2022, I will have a solo exhibition of my Sculpture and Photography, all new work, at the Bareiss Gallery here in Taos

Here’s the advertisement for the exhibit and the details.

Geraint Smith Exhibit at the Bareiss Galley Taos — Exhibition at Bareiss Gallery, Taos, NM

As always, thank you for your support, comments and compliments. Have a good week. G

Foggy Morning, Moonrise, Rio Grande Cloud, Abiquiu Photo Tour.

Geraint July 28, 2021 6 Comments

From fog in the Arroyo Hondo Valley to a full moon rise over Taos Mountain. From a photo tour/workshop in Abiquiu and the Rio Chama Valley to a large cloud over the Taos Valley, Taos Mountain, and the Rio Grande Gorge.

It’s been all go for the last month with tours. I have a few more tours coming up and then a short break for a couple of days following up on some personal work. I’m grateful for the photography tours and workshops and the wonderful photography clients I get to work with.

In the first two photos, I got up and out early to shoot the moon setting. Well, it set, right into a big bank of fog. So I shot the fog lifting in the Arroyo Hondo Valley just south of where I intended to catch the moon. Fog is a rare occurrence in this area, but we’ve had so much rain recently that it was only a matter of time until it filled the valleys.

Fog in Arroyo Hondo, NM — A foggy morning in Arroyo Hondo, northern NM

Fog in Arroyo Hondo, New Mexico — A tree in the fog in Arroyo Hondo, northern NM

In the following shot, I sat out on the deck waiting for the nearly full moon to appear from behind Taos Mountain. When it did, it had a pinkish hue to it from the fire smoke in the atmosphere. It was still beautiful nonetheless.

Full Moon rise Taos Mountain — Nearly full moonrise over Taos Mountain from the deck in San Cristobal, NM

The cloud below formed very quickly and filled the sky from Taos to the west of the Rio Grande Gorge. I had to shoot three frames and stitch them together to capture the immense size. I liked the corkscrew-looking form. I’d not seen one like it before.

Lastly, a fun panorama shot at the Rio Chama overlook in Abiquiu with William, a client on a cross-country road trip who stopped in Taos and joined me for a three-day photo tour.

Fun on a photo tour/workshop in Abiquiu, Rio Chama, NM

As always, thank you for looking. G

Golden Eagle, Snow, Rio Grande Gorge, New Mexico

Geraint December 10, 2020 10 Comments

Golden Eagle in a snowstorm Orilla Verde Recreation Area in the Rio Grande Gorge, New Mexico. The tree is a decades-long roosting place for Bald Eagles. This tree succumbed to the elements over the last few years and made room for hawks, osprey and golden eagles. Everything falls in to place perfectly. Thanks for looking. G

Bighorn Sheep, Rio Grande Gorge, New Mexico

Geraint December 8, 2020 8 Comments

Bighorn Sheep in the Rio Grande Gorge west of Taos, New Mexico. Sometimes they disappear far away into the canyon because they can. My photographer clients ask me, “where do they go?” to which I reply, “anywhere they want.” This one and a few others showed up just where we want them, on a rock! Thanks for looking. G

Fall Color, Orilla Verde, Rio Grande Gorge, NM

Geraint November 24, 2020 No Comments

Fall Color along the riverbank in the Orilla Verde Recreation Area, the Rio Grande Gorge, NM. I took an early morning drive when the sun rises and illuminates the walls of the canyon along with the sky, reflected in the placid river. I liked the light on the chamiso bush and the way the reflection created the playful background. Thanks for looking. G

Barrancos Blancos, Cemetery, Shrine, Embudo, New Mexico

Geraint November 23, 2020 6 Comments

Barrancos Blancos, cemetery and shrine, on the banks of the Rio Grande in Embudo, New Mexico. There’s a snowstorm forecast, so I thought this would make an appropriate image for the season. I didn’t go far today, just back to the digital darkroom/office and the archives. Thanks for looking. G